It is well known in motor vehicles to provide a trim panel for covering the vehicle interior structure such as the instrument panel or the door.
It is desirable to provide such a trim panel having regions of different aesthetic characteristics. For example, it may be desirable to provide a two-tone instrument panel cover or a two-tone door trim panel having regions of different color.
Vehicle trim panels are typically comprised of a cloth or vinyl covering over a rigid substrate. One method for manufacturing such trim panels is to load a sheet of vinyl in a mold and then pour urethane into the mold to adhere to the sheet vinyl. The cured urethane provides a rigid substrate panel to which the vinyl cover is adhered. Thus, by choosing the color of the vinyl sheet, the trim panel either matches or contrasts with the vehicle interior according to the choice of the vehicle interior designer.
The present invention provides a new and improved method for manufacturing vehicle interior trim panels such as door panels and instrument panels in which different regions of the trim panel have different colors or other aesthetic characteristics.